We arrived at Devil’s Marbles around 14:00, realising that it is a significant site of cultural value and geological beauty. It is north of Alice Springs. Luckily, we booked a caravan spot two days before and we set up camp, walked around one of the sites, and enjoying the views. It was terrific.
Quite notable, around 16:00 fellow campers arrived, set up camp and did a walk. The next morning around 10:00 they were off again. We arranged to stay another night, doing two more very interesting walks. However, since I have noticed inquiries on Facebook groups of participants asking feedback how to increase the amount of spots to visit and (normally) in their time limited itineraries, I felt I can share my take on it. I do agree that two underlying philosophies play a role here. “Depth of experience” versus “breadth of experience.” Which is the best? When travelling in Europe I admit to using “breath of experience” frequently since one is very time-limited because it costs money to fit in experiences, and one cannot “make more time”. However, when travelling one’s country you stay in, the breadth of experience can be a killer. I see this as a terrible loss for anyone participating in ticking down as much as sites at the cost of really engaging with them.
- For example, to share with people that one has visited Devil’s Marbles, but it was limited to around a three-hour sunlight engagement, is a real loss. In engaging with our lap, we made some decisions which are benefitting us. What we did:
- While we do have an itinerary, it is not set in stone. Some places we book in advance, but in most instances do not book ahead.
- We allow extra days in our plans just in case we need to change. In Alice Springs, we decided to wait until the rain stopped in the West MacDonald Ranges because we knew that area was beautiful. We lingered on another four days to make that possible. And it did not impact on our overall travel plans.
- We select areas where we can set up a base camp and visit sites from that base, meaning we do not spend as much time towing. Fifty percent plus of our travels are without our caravan.
- Both of us agreed not wanting to be in the tow tug all the time towing. We want to enjoy “terra firma,” see and experience nature. That means going slower and spending time at different places. And yes, we sometimes just take a day for relaxing and reading.
- The implications are that we may not see as many sites compared to others, but we can talk of our experience at each of the places we visited.
My own take on this debate is that depth of experience fits me much more. Cull down on the amount you want to do and engage!
